Last Wednesday, April 20, I was the program at the Council of Elders (a senior’s ministry). My responsibility was to answer the questions of those gathered. One of the questions was, “What are the strengths and weaknesses of Epiphany?” If you were asked that question, how would you answer? Following are my answers.
The first strength that I mentioned was the leadership of the Church Council. Council members are totally dedicated to the current and future ministries of Epiphany. They are open to new ways to deliver ministries to Epiphany’s disciples and to Centerville and beyond. And, they have worked hard to take the high ground in decisions concerning transactions with Living Water.
Put into context, the strength of the Council is extraordinary. It would have been easy for the Council to “circle the wagons” after January 1 to protect what already existed. In psychological terms, it would have been normal to become passive-aggressive by adopting a “poor us” attitude. But the Council defies “circle the wagons” and “poor us.” Again, using psychological terms, the Council has been assertive in facing current challenges and future opportunities. This assertiveness, to me, is a great strength.
A second strength is the program staff. Enough cannot be said about the dedication of Pastor Sara, Ken Proehl, Cindy Dahlman, Jane Lane, Dick Lane, Andy Addy, Megan Rund, Heather Phillips, and April Barrett. Each has provided leadership in their areas of responsibilities. When I first arrived, I would not have been surprised to find a staff that felt beaten down but this was not the case. I acknowledge the great effort put forth by these leaders as I hope you do.
A third strength is the creativity and enthusiasm of Epiphany’s laity. It feels to me like permission has been given for members to become creative and excited about ministry. Three examples are: the benefit for Kay Wean, Operation Prom Dress, and the Easter Picnic. Many have said to me “the old spirit has returned to our church.” I have thoroughly enjoyed the laughter, joking, and bantering that occurs in the gathering space and around the building.
Now, what about the weaknesses? I don’t see weaknesses. What I see are great challenges ahead. The question is, “How will these challenges be met?” The Council is in the process of discerning God’s vision for Epiphany. They will write a document describing what Epiphany will look like in 10 years. The description will include the size of the congregations, the ministries offered, the administrative structure that undergirds ministries, and the program staff needed to deliver ministry. This document will be shared with the congregation and with candidates to be the new senior pastor.
Another challenge is going to be financial. Epiphany is NOT in a desperate financial situation. On the other hand, it would be foolish to say there are no financial issues. Giving has been strong in the first quarter of the year. We are watching closely what giving will be like in the second quarter. The real test is going to be when the new senior pastor arrives and is drawing a full salary.
A third challenge is going to be rebuilding the program staff. We have already hired a new youth director. There will need to be a third full-time pastor in the future. The vision document described above will describe the responsibilities of additional staff.
What would you add to my impressions of Epiphany?
Pastor Pete
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
Finding A New Pastor
Today, I will brief the staff on the process for calling a new senior pastor. As I prepared for this briefing, it occurred to me that all the disciples at Epiphany might like to know the process as well. The process is as follows.
After the resignation of a (senior) pastor, Bishop Holloway meets with the Church Council. This happened on April 12. At that meeting, the Bishop explained his expectations of Epiphany and of the candidates that will be recommended to become the senior pastor.
There are three sources for these candidates. The first is from the Bishop’s office. The Bishop, or his assistant - in this case Pastor Ed Williams, will conduct a nation wide search for candidates that seem to match the needs of Epiphany. These candidates are identified through conversations with other bishops, or by the “mobility papers” (a candidate’s self-profile) submitted by pastors looking to move from the churches they presently serve, or from pastors who have contacted the Synod office asking about serving at Epiphany. The names of these candidates are passed on to the Call Committee with recommendations about their skills to lead Epiphany.
The second source for candidates is from the disciples at Epiphany. Disciples can submit names of pastors they believe could lead Epiphany. Once the Council or Call Committee has received a name, the name will be passed on to the Synod office for comments and a recommendation.
The third source of candidates is the candidates themselves. A pastor may directly contact Epiphany and asked to be considered. Again, this pastor’s name will be passed on to the Synod office for the Bishop’s comments and recommendation.
Each candidate will be given a profile of Epiphany. It is the Council’s responsibility to provide a profile describing the demographics of the disciples at Epiphany, the primary area that Epiphany serves, and the ministries that meet the challenges and needs of the area Epiphany serves. Bishop Holloway stressed that the most important document in this profile is a vision of what Epiphany’s ministries will be like in the next ten years.
The Council is also responsible to appoint a Call Committee. The Bishop recommended the Committee have seven members but the number of those serving can vary slightly. Committee members are to represent the entire discipleship at Epiphany and not a group or ministry area within the congregation. The Bishop also recommended that no former clergy or current staff members be on the Call Committee.
The responsibilities of the Call Committee are: The Committee will review the mobility papers of candidates to determine which ones they would like to consider as a viable candidate to be senior pastor. They will conduct interviews with possible candidates. These interview can be conference calls, skyping, or whatever other communication media the Committee decides to use. After initial interviews, the Committee chooses a primary candidate. They can visit this candidate on his or her “turf,” listen to the candidate preach and observe the candidate leading worship. Finally, the candidate can be invited to Centerville to meet the Council, assess the area which Epiphany serves, and to lead worship. If all goes well, the Committee recommends the Candidate to the Council. (If all does not go well, the process is repeated with a new set of candidates.) Finally, the Council submits the name of the candidate to the congregation for its approval to extend a call to the candidate to become the new senior pastor at Epiphany.
Pastor Pete
After the resignation of a (senior) pastor, Bishop Holloway meets with the Church Council. This happened on April 12. At that meeting, the Bishop explained his expectations of Epiphany and of the candidates that will be recommended to become the senior pastor.
There are three sources for these candidates. The first is from the Bishop’s office. The Bishop, or his assistant - in this case Pastor Ed Williams, will conduct a nation wide search for candidates that seem to match the needs of Epiphany. These candidates are identified through conversations with other bishops, or by the “mobility papers” (a candidate’s self-profile) submitted by pastors looking to move from the churches they presently serve, or from pastors who have contacted the Synod office asking about serving at Epiphany. The names of these candidates are passed on to the Call Committee with recommendations about their skills to lead Epiphany.
The second source for candidates is from the disciples at Epiphany. Disciples can submit names of pastors they believe could lead Epiphany. Once the Council or Call Committee has received a name, the name will be passed on to the Synod office for comments and a recommendation.
The third source of candidates is the candidates themselves. A pastor may directly contact Epiphany and asked to be considered. Again, this pastor’s name will be passed on to the Synod office for the Bishop’s comments and recommendation.
Each candidate will be given a profile of Epiphany. It is the Council’s responsibility to provide a profile describing the demographics of the disciples at Epiphany, the primary area that Epiphany serves, and the ministries that meet the challenges and needs of the area Epiphany serves. Bishop Holloway stressed that the most important document in this profile is a vision of what Epiphany’s ministries will be like in the next ten years.
The Council is also responsible to appoint a Call Committee. The Bishop recommended the Committee have seven members but the number of those serving can vary slightly. Committee members are to represent the entire discipleship at Epiphany and not a group or ministry area within the congregation. The Bishop also recommended that no former clergy or current staff members be on the Call Committee.
The responsibilities of the Call Committee are: The Committee will review the mobility papers of candidates to determine which ones they would like to consider as a viable candidate to be senior pastor. They will conduct interviews with possible candidates. These interview can be conference calls, skyping, or whatever other communication media the Committee decides to use. After initial interviews, the Committee chooses a primary candidate. They can visit this candidate on his or her “turf,” listen to the candidate preach and observe the candidate leading worship. Finally, the candidate can be invited to Centerville to meet the Council, assess the area which Epiphany serves, and to lead worship. If all goes well, the Committee recommends the Candidate to the Council. (If all does not go well, the process is repeated with a new set of candidates.) Finally, the Council submits the name of the candidate to the congregation for its approval to extend a call to the candidate to become the new senior pastor at Epiphany.
Pastor Pete
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
What's Happening Now
There are four significant events that are going to happen in the administrative life of Epiphany within the next week. All four events are in the area of leadership. This week’s blog addresses these events in order to keep you up to date about what is happening at Epiphany.
Epiphany is a large church and it requires strong leaders to envision and implement its ministry programs, recruit and train volunteers, and to grow ministry. Therefore, the first three events address replacing former leaders.
Today, Tuesday April 12, the task force responsible to find a new youth director for Epiphany is recommending an offer be extended to one of the candidates it has interviewed. If the Council’s vote is positive, the candidate will be contacted and hopefully will accept the offer. This is very positive news as we begin the process of building on the strong work of those who have kept the youth program alive since its last director left.
Also today, Bishop Holloway of the Southern Ohio Synod will meet with the Church Council to talk about the process of calling a new senior pastor. After the Bishop’s meeting, a call committee will be appointed and synodical forms will be filled out. These forms will be given to potential candidates as they prayerfully consider entering into a conversation with Epiphany. Throughout the entire process, Epiphany will be working with Pastor Ed Williams, Assistant to the Bishop.
A week from today, April 19, the Council gathers for its regular monthly meeting. One agenda item is a vote to extend an offer to a pastor to be on the interim team. This pastor will preach twice a month at the Austin Campus, develop ministry programs at the Austin Campus, and help in the chaplaincy care. The goal in calling this pastor is two-fold. First, it is to guarantee that both Austin and Far HIlls have preachers and presiders for the celebration of Holy Communion. Second, the development of ministry at Austin will help this campus grow in worship, study, serving others, and fellowship.
Finally, the Council will begin practicing a new leadership approach of overseeing Epiphany’s ministries. In large congregations, the Council is responsible for, 1. visioning, 2. setting policies and boundaries, 3. defining the end results of ministries, 4. drafting the annual budget, 5. evaluating the senior pastor, and 6. recommending a new senior pastor when the current senior pastor resigns or retires. The Council is not responsible for the implementation and supervision of daily ministries. Implementation and supervision of daily ministries is the responsibility of the senior pastor. This month, the Council is reducing the allotted time for overseeing daily ministry and increasing the time allocated for a discussion of the purpose of Epiphany. Once the Council has reached consensus on Epiphany’s purpose, it will begin to discern God’s vision for Epiphany over the next ten years. The Council’s consensus around purpose and discerning God’s vision will be used in the conversations Epiphany will have with candidates to be the new senior pastor.
The votes to invite three people to join Epiphany's staff are important as we move through this transition period. The Council’s reallocation of time from overseeing the daily ministries of Epiphany is of equal if not greater importance. This reallocation will help Epiphany meet the ever changing ministry needs of those who live in an ever changing world.
Pastor Pete
Epiphany is a large church and it requires strong leaders to envision and implement its ministry programs, recruit and train volunteers, and to grow ministry. Therefore, the first three events address replacing former leaders.
Today, Tuesday April 12, the task force responsible to find a new youth director for Epiphany is recommending an offer be extended to one of the candidates it has interviewed. If the Council’s vote is positive, the candidate will be contacted and hopefully will accept the offer. This is very positive news as we begin the process of building on the strong work of those who have kept the youth program alive since its last director left.
Also today, Bishop Holloway of the Southern Ohio Synod will meet with the Church Council to talk about the process of calling a new senior pastor. After the Bishop’s meeting, a call committee will be appointed and synodical forms will be filled out. These forms will be given to potential candidates as they prayerfully consider entering into a conversation with Epiphany. Throughout the entire process, Epiphany will be working with Pastor Ed Williams, Assistant to the Bishop.
A week from today, April 19, the Council gathers for its regular monthly meeting. One agenda item is a vote to extend an offer to a pastor to be on the interim team. This pastor will preach twice a month at the Austin Campus, develop ministry programs at the Austin Campus, and help in the chaplaincy care. The goal in calling this pastor is two-fold. First, it is to guarantee that both Austin and Far HIlls have preachers and presiders for the celebration of Holy Communion. Second, the development of ministry at Austin will help this campus grow in worship, study, serving others, and fellowship.
Finally, the Council will begin practicing a new leadership approach of overseeing Epiphany’s ministries. In large congregations, the Council is responsible for, 1. visioning, 2. setting policies and boundaries, 3. defining the end results of ministries, 4. drafting the annual budget, 5. evaluating the senior pastor, and 6. recommending a new senior pastor when the current senior pastor resigns or retires. The Council is not responsible for the implementation and supervision of daily ministries. Implementation and supervision of daily ministries is the responsibility of the senior pastor. This month, the Council is reducing the allotted time for overseeing daily ministry and increasing the time allocated for a discussion of the purpose of Epiphany. Once the Council has reached consensus on Epiphany’s purpose, it will begin to discern God’s vision for Epiphany over the next ten years. The Council’s consensus around purpose and discerning God’s vision will be used in the conversations Epiphany will have with candidates to be the new senior pastor.
The votes to invite three people to join Epiphany's staff are important as we move through this transition period. The Council’s reallocation of time from overseeing the daily ministries of Epiphany is of equal if not greater importance. This reallocation will help Epiphany meet the ever changing ministry needs of those who live in an ever changing world.
Pastor Pete
Tuesday, April 5, 2011
Looking Back To Look Forward
On Saturday, April 2, Emlyn Ott, from Trinity Seminary and Dir. of Healthy Congregations, led about 40 disciples at Epiphany in an exercise designed to bring insights to the hurt felt over the events of the last year(s). The exercise asked small groups to identify events in the life of Epiphany in each decade since its founding in 1959. As I listened, I thought of the theme lines that were being formed for Epiphany. (Remember, I talked about theme lines in my last blog.)
“Epiphany is the church that reaches out” was a common theme line throughout the discussion. As I listened, I remembered George Barna’s research that maintained that up to 80% of a congregation’s neighbors do not know the congregation exists because the congregation did nothing to minister to its neighbors. Epiphany is among the 20% that has avoided the temptation to only serve its disciples. Throughout its history, Epiphany has served disciples and non-disciples of Jesus by sharing the love of God’s son with those inside and outside of its building.
It would be easy to say that Epiphany should be known as a congregation that reaches out to others. But, in a marketing book that I recently read, the author makes the point that too many congregations tell the world about themselves. In contrast, the author encourages congregations to address the needs of the people they are trying to reach and serve. People will listen when a congregation addresses their needs but will not listen when a congregation begins the conversation by talking about itself. Therefore, I would take the theme line, “Epiphany is the church that reaches out,” and rewrite it as “Epiphany is a church for those who want to give back.” Epiphany is a church that wants to give back in the greater Centerville area; i.e., Operation Prom Dress, The Pantry, Blood Drives, and the Preschool. On a larger scale, it is a church that sponsors the Kairos Prison Ministry. It is a church that provides leadership in the Southern Ohio Synod. And, even on a larger scale, it is a church with mission partners around the world.
As the small groups discussed Epiphany’s history, the observation was made that Epiphany is a congregation that is resilient. Its resilience is, first and foremost, part of God’s grace. Resilience is also a result of being able to stay focused on Epiphany’s purpose, “Connection Jesus to the world one disciple at a time.” As long as this is the focus of Epiphany, Epiphany’s future is secure.
I should add, there were two other statements that caught my attention. The first was that “Epiphany is a place were disciples of Jesus work hand in hand while looking to God.” That is a great image as we see ourselves as God’s people working together to achieve God’s purpose for Epiphany. The second statement played on Epiphany’s image of being the triangle church. Could Epiphany’s logo be a triangle (with a cross on the top) with one side labeled “Welcoming,” the second side “Caring,” and the third side “Sharing”?
Finally, focusing on the positives of Epiphany’s past and current ministries, defining a theme line to reflect how Epiphany wants to be known, and exploring a new logo are all part of the healing process. These discussions take us from the good ministries of the past into the future where God is worshiped, and ample opportunities exist to serve others as a response to what God has already given to Epiphany as the corporate body of Christ and each disciple in Epiphany's membership.
Pastor Pete
“Epiphany is the church that reaches out” was a common theme line throughout the discussion. As I listened, I remembered George Barna’s research that maintained that up to 80% of a congregation’s neighbors do not know the congregation exists because the congregation did nothing to minister to its neighbors. Epiphany is among the 20% that has avoided the temptation to only serve its disciples. Throughout its history, Epiphany has served disciples and non-disciples of Jesus by sharing the love of God’s son with those inside and outside of its building.
It would be easy to say that Epiphany should be known as a congregation that reaches out to others. But, in a marketing book that I recently read, the author makes the point that too many congregations tell the world about themselves. In contrast, the author encourages congregations to address the needs of the people they are trying to reach and serve. People will listen when a congregation addresses their needs but will not listen when a congregation begins the conversation by talking about itself. Therefore, I would take the theme line, “Epiphany is the church that reaches out,” and rewrite it as “Epiphany is a church for those who want to give back.” Epiphany is a church that wants to give back in the greater Centerville area; i.e., Operation Prom Dress, The Pantry, Blood Drives, and the Preschool. On a larger scale, it is a church that sponsors the Kairos Prison Ministry. It is a church that provides leadership in the Southern Ohio Synod. And, even on a larger scale, it is a church with mission partners around the world.
As the small groups discussed Epiphany’s history, the observation was made that Epiphany is a congregation that is resilient. Its resilience is, first and foremost, part of God’s grace. Resilience is also a result of being able to stay focused on Epiphany’s purpose, “Connection Jesus to the world one disciple at a time.” As long as this is the focus of Epiphany, Epiphany’s future is secure.
I should add, there were two other statements that caught my attention. The first was that “Epiphany is a place were disciples of Jesus work hand in hand while looking to God.” That is a great image as we see ourselves as God’s people working together to achieve God’s purpose for Epiphany. The second statement played on Epiphany’s image of being the triangle church. Could Epiphany’s logo be a triangle (with a cross on the top) with one side labeled “Welcoming,” the second side “Caring,” and the third side “Sharing”?
Finally, focusing on the positives of Epiphany’s past and current ministries, defining a theme line to reflect how Epiphany wants to be known, and exploring a new logo are all part of the healing process. These discussions take us from the good ministries of the past into the future where God is worshiped, and ample opportunities exist to serve others as a response to what God has already given to Epiphany as the corporate body of Christ and each disciple in Epiphany's membership.
Pastor Pete
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